


If I Told You How The Story Ends, Would You Change A Step You Take

by TophsLegacy



Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Soulmate-Identifying Timers, uncurse the bbb server
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-21
Updated: 2020-03-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:34:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23241037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TophsLegacy/pseuds/TophsLegacy
Summary: Soulmate AU in which everyone has a watch that counts down to the moment they meet their soulmate. Once the watch stops ticking, you've found them - whether you wanted to or not. Angst with a happy ending as requested by @Battlesnow36 on tumblr, I hope you enjoy it.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long
Comments: 21
Kudos: 167





	If I Told You How The Story Ends, Would You Change A Step You Take

There were plenty of Faunus in Menagerie, but Blake had the misfortune of meeting a silver-tongued serpent, disguised as a charming scarlet haired boy. They were friends, he’d made her laugh, made her think, challenged her in ways that no one else had – she wouldn’t find out until later that it was all part of the plan, she was just another chess piece he moved around the board, only ever serving himself. 

_But we could be so good together._ He’d start to say. Casually. It never held weight, never sat for too long in silence. Unassuming, a seed planted for later. 

_Who needs soulmates? We could be something better._ That one was said in a whisper. A hair's breadth away, she could feel the heat – sickly sweet on her skin. Intentioned, water to make the seed bloom. 

_Don’t you trust me by now?_ By that time, she couldn’t say no, they’d shared so much – and to him nowhere near enough. _Besides._ He’d say. _Who else could love you now?_ Ensnared, a flower grown – wilting under pressure. 

She’d believe him too. That was the worst part. Convinced she was soiled, undeserving, broken. Why would her soulmate want her like this? She thought he was all she had, just like he’d planned. 

As she lay awake, restless – she couldn’t help but curse the rhythmic ticking coming from her wrist. It had always been there. In her moments of strength, it was a beacon, it was hope. A reminder of good things to come. But those were few and far between. In the near-constant darkness, the ticking was a metronome of despair, counting the eternity in his grasp. 

She often thought about what would happen if the ticking stopped. If she’d look up from whatever she was doing and seek out salvation, or if she’d sprint in the other direction – saving them from a lifetime of disappointment. 

Eventually, it did stop. When it did, she sat alone in a coffee shop, one of the few respites she had from his presence. With her hands nestled around her hot mug of tea, she saw that the hands of the watch on her wrist had frozen in place – so she did the same. 

Stock still, she didn’t even look up when someone sat in the chair across from her. The blonde woman in front of her waited patiently, a soft smile on her face, only shifting to take sips of her drink. They sat for a while in silence, Blake’s eyes nervously flicked around the table, trying to stealthily take in the other women’s features, all her other muscles’ rigid with tension.

She was breathtaking but so achingly familiar. It became too difficult to look away like gravity was pulling them closer to one another. Once Blake had lifted her eyes she awkwardly smiled, feeling odd about having said nothing at all in the minutes they’d sat together. 

The blonde was the first one to break the silence, “Hey.” 

_Hey._ So casual like they’d met a thousand times before this, maybe they had.

“Hi.” It came out as a whisper, at least it felt that way with all his words screaming in her head. 

The blonde leaned forward, careful not to get too close, “It feels strange to ask, but can I know your name?”

Hesitation tied her lips together, but the warmth of the women’s smile cut the strings, “It’s Blake.” 

“Beautiful.” A whisper she wasn’t sure she was supposed to hear, soft with revelry. A second later she shook her head and let lose a grin that could rival the sun, “I’m Yang. I can’t tell you how nice it is to finally meet you.” 

She shrunk in her seat, so used to being wilted, “It might not feel that way for long.”

“Let me buy you another cup of tea.” Yang beamed with optimism. She looked down at her empty mug and nodded. She had to give it a chance, it was the least Yang deserved. 

Rooted in her seat Blake watched her walk up to the counter, a buoyancy in her step that almost made her look like she was floating. She wondered what kind of life Yang had up until now. Was she truly as unburdened as she seemed, or did she just carry the weight better than others? Before she could speculate which was more likely, Yang had made her way back to the table, she grinned as she looked from the cup of tea to Blake. 

“Pen-tea for your thoughts?” She was visibly straining to hold back a laugh as she sat down and handed over the mug. 

Blake stared jaw slack, so unprepared that she couldn’t hold back the smile that crossed her lips as she held back a chuckle with her hand.

“Okay, that was not my best, but I needed to see you smile again,” Yang admitted with a sheepish smile, one hand reaching to rub the back of her neck. 

The sincerity was overwhelming. Nobody had ever felt so much like home before. She looked up from her tea and saw an entire life she wanted to live in Yang’s lilac eyes. 

They sat in comfortable silence for a while. They sipped on their drinks and didn’t comment on how often their eyes kept gravitating back to each other. Blake remembered the pun, Yang had asked her a question, disguised as the worst pun she’d ever heard, but a question none the less. She let out a slow breath, lungs filling with dread – there was no way to avoid the subject for long. He’d be expecting her soon anyway.

“I’m – afraid.” 

Yang’s brow furrowed in confusion, “Of me?” 

“No.” she breathed. The idea of Yang thinking she could be afraid of her was more concerning than the impending fall out of her past. How fast priorities can change when you’re face to face with the rest of your life.

“Whatever it is, we can face it together – if that’s what you want.” Yang reached out and grazed her fingers over the back of Blake’s hand. Her touch was fleeting, an invitation not a demand. 

Blake gripped her mug with strength she’d wished she could have mustered when she was younger, “You shouldn’t have to deal with any of it, I should have been stronger.” She took a deep breath, “It isn’t your fight.” 

“Blake” She called, dipping her head to try to get Blake to look at her again. Once their eyes met, Yang settled her hands around hers, making her relax the grip she’d had on the mug. Her smile was soft, but her eyes burned with an intensity that Blake hadn’t seen yet. 

“I know we just met. But I think I could fight the world for you, if you let me.”


End file.
